City Says It Will Provide Land Titles to 33 Boeng Kak Families
Phnom Penh Municipality will provide land titles to 33 more families living in the city’s Boeng Kak neighborhood, a municipal official said Tuesday, roughly a third of those still seeking property rights in the area that has seen some 3,000 forced evictions. “First, we will solve the problem for some of them, then we will solve the problem for the remaining families,” City Hall spokesman Long Dimanche said by telephone following a meeting Tuesday morning with Phnom Penh governor Pa Socheatvong and several representatives of the Boeng Kak community. … In 2007, 12.44 hectares of the Boeng Kak area was leased to Shukaku Inc., a real estate firm owned by CPP Senator Lao Meng Khin. Heng Mom, a Boeng Kak villager who participated in the meeting—which also included representatives of the Borei Keila and Thma Koul communities—welcomed the municipality’s decision. “I am very happy to hear this,” Ms. Mom said, adding that a total of 63 Boeng Kak families are still seeking ownership documents for their existing homes. … Also Tuesday morning, a separate group of about 50 Boeng Kak residents led by anti-eviction champion Tep Vanny marched to the Supreme Court, where they called for the high tribunal to hurry proceedings in the case of Yorm Bopha, a fellow activist who is serving a two-year prison sentence for incitement, a charge her supporters say is politically motivated. …
Khy Sovuthy and Ben Woods
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/city-says-it-will-provide-land-titles-to-33-boeng-kak-families-45710/
